Cushioning and centering device for railway car couplers



J. s. SWA-NN 2,308,032

CUSHIONING AND CENTERING DEVICE FOR RAILWAY CAR COUPLERS Jan; 12,1943;

Filed July 17, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet l Jan. 12, 1943. 2,308,032

CUSHIONING AND CENTERING DEVICE FOR RAILWAY CAR COUPLERS J. s. SWANNFiled July 17, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Jan. 12, 1943 CUSHIONINGAND CENTERING DEVICE FOR RAILl VAY CAR COUPLERS James S. Swann,Homewood, 111., assignor to Standard Railway Equipment ManufacturingCompany, Chicago, 111., a corporation of Delaware Application July 17,1941, Serial No. 402,730

19 Claims. (Cl. 213--21) The device relates to railway cars and moreparticularly to the means for supporting the outer end of a railway carcoupler adjacent its head which permits the coupler to move horizontallyand vertically and adjust itself to the,

curves and unevenness of the track and one oi the objects of theinvention is to provide a yielding means for supporting the outer end ofthe coupler in a vertical and/or horizontal direction so that when freeto do so the coupler will return.

to its normal height and to a position adjacent the center of the car,which arrangement has several objects and advantages hereinafterenumerated.

When a coupler is supported by a carrier,

which is immovable vertically, a great stress is thrown in the shank ofthe coupler when the car passes over a hump or valley in the track(technically known as vertical curves) which when occurring while thecouplers are under severe pulling or buifing stresses is a seriousmatter and this condition was a contributing cause of the AmericanRailway Association increasing the size of the standard coupler shank.One of the objects of the invention, therefore, is to reduce the servicestresses in the coupler by producing a yielding coupler carrier therebypermitting the outerend of the coupler to move downwardly so that thecenter line of the coupled couplers will be nearer a straight line,thereby reducing the resultant forces in the coupler shanks. When theforce ceases, for instance, when the cars are uncoupled, the yieldingcarrier forces the coupler to its normal vertical position, which isprescribed by the American Railway Association and which is necessary sothat the couplers will automatically couple when the cars are runtogether.

Another object of the yielding carrier is to prevent the jar in thecoupler caused by the uneven track and the movement of the coupler uponthe carrier from being transmitted to the adjacent car parts, which jarand vibration causes the fastening means, such as bolts, to becomeloose, or perhaps entirely inefiective. Jars and jolts between thecoupler and the carrier are also caused by the engaging parts of the twocoupled couplers slipping over each other under pressure. Furthermore,such yielding means, by reducing the vertical force of the coupler uponits carrier,

reduces the friction and consequent wear between these parts. The wearupon the coupler shank makes a weak place in the shank causing it tobreak at that place when the cars are coupled, especially when coupledin a hump or valley in the track.

Another object of the invention is to provide a coil spring to support acar coupler and position it in the car relative to the car coupler sothat when the coupler moves sidewise of the car the spring is distorted,causing a tendency for the spring to return the coupler to the center ofthe car and when the coupler moves vertically the spring is compressedcausing a tendency to return the coupler to its normal height. For thepurpose of describing and defining this invention the term distorted, asherein used, means that the spring is deformed laterally of itslongitudinal axis in differentiation from the term compression which, asherein used, means that the spring is deformed coincident with itslongitudinal axis. These are general engineering terms.

Another object is to provide a device which cushions and centers thecoupler without twisting the coupler when the cars go around curves,which twisting action distorts the coupler shank and moving parts of thecoupler causing them to work hard or even bind, making the couplerinoperative. This is accomplished by maintaining the top of the carrierparallel to the bottom of the coupler and in contact therewith. In otherwords, the carrier adjusts itself to the coupler. Maintaining the widthof the coupler shank in contact with the carrier maintains a largebearing area between these two elements and thereby reduces the wearupon them.

One of the objects of the invention is to increase the amount ofpermissible lateral movement of a coupler by providing automatic meansfor returning the couplers to the longitudinal center of the car or atleast close enough thereto so that the automatic couplers will couple.This is what is termed the coupling range.

It is very often necessary to couple cars on curves and frequently whenthe radius of the curve is very small, as is common around industrialplants, the couplers of the two cars will be so far out of alignmentthat they will not automatically couple. Another object of the inventionis to automatically bring such couplers within coupling range.

In my device the lateral movement between the coupler and the carrier iseliminated, thus reducing friction and consequent wear on the parts.This is quite an item particularly in sandy countries because couplersare costly and the replacement of a coupler means keeping the car out ofservice.

Coupler positioning devices reduces the number of broken knuckles andguard arms on couplers which means are frequently bent or broken whenthe couplers are not within coupling range. Such devices also reduce thenumber of accidents to trainmen as they are not required to go betweenthe cars and position the coupler preparatory to coupling.

Another object of the invention is to provide means to limit theupwardmovement'of the yielding coupler carrier so that the yielding means willnot force the coupler up beyond the predetermined standard heightestablished by the American Railway Association. It also desirable torestrict the vertical upward movement ,of the coupler so that when thecar is turned upside down in an unloading machine the component parts ofthe yielding means will not lose their proper relative positions andbecome ineffective.

One of the objects of the invention is to provide a cooperativerelationship between such a spring so that when the coupler moveslaterally of the car from its normal central position, the verticalservice movements of vthecoupler compress the coil springsubstantially'equallyon all sides thereof, or mother words, around theperimeter of the coil spring, thus equally distributing the stresses inthe spring; that is, in the round bar of which thecoil spring is made.Such distribution materially increases the resiliency of thespring andalsothe life of the spring. This advantage applies whether thecoil .isflattened as shown in Fig.12) or'is circular. .A convolute spring is acoil spring as far as this invention is concerned. The distortion of thespring tends to return the coupler to normal position.

"In the construction illustrated I have shown the cooperativerelationship obtainedby theuse of a rocker supporting the spring ridingor rocking upon a fiat surface of a member attached to the car proper.It. is understood that all'IIrequire to :accomplish the desired purposeis :a

rocking or rollingly tiltable relationship between;

the spring and whatever element resists the load imposed upon thespring. The rockerrnayhave a convex surface engaginga flat surface onthe supporting element or the rocker may have a flat surface engaging aconvex surface on the supporting element or both surfaces maybe convex.Teeth may be providedupon the engaging surfaces to prevent slipping. Therocking means maybe at top and/or bottomof the spring. Furthermore, itis possible that the workmen may fail to install the spring, inwhichevent the carrier would not be yielding, but the car, nevertheless,would be serviceable.

Another object of the invention is to provide means to limit themovement of the carrier lengthwise of the car, which:means also preventsthe carrier from tipping when the coupler slides over it.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 showsa typical application of my device to a railway car,

.Fig. 2 isa section .online 2-2 of Fig. 1. with the coupler shown in dotand dash lines.

Fig. 3 is similar to Figs. 1 .andf2 and shows the coupler moved sidewiseof the car and .the spring distorted.

Fig. 4 shows a modified structure.

Fig. 5 is another modified structure.

' FigFGshOWS-a'spring in normal position.

Fig. '7 shows a' spring distorted laterally without my rocker.

Fig. 8 shows a spring distorted'laterally when used with my rocker.

Fig. 9 shows a detail of the base plate of Fig.5.

in properrelation to the .carmember-i.

Fig. 10 is a broken away perspective view of the rocker.

Fig. 11 is a section on line H-! of Fig. 2.

In the drawings the striking casting or other car member 2 is attachedto the car and supported thereby by any convenient means, such as therivets 3-4, which hold it to the draft sills 5 or framing of the car.The coupler l rests upon the carrier 3 and is retained in centralposition thereon by the lugs 9 and the carrier 8 is providedwithextensions H which move between the spaced apart wall I3l i of the member 2 to restrict the movement of the carrier t longitudinally of .thecar, but which permit free movement thereof laterally of the car. Thiscarrier '8 is provided with a spring seat It and ribs it which form apocket and retain the spring 2c in its proper relation to the carrier.The rocket to .isprovided with a spring seat 2! and ribs 26 which form apocket and retain the spring 2G The rocker l9. rocks or rollingly tiltson the horizontal wall 38 or the member 2 and is provided with wings 3:which are providedtwith holes for the bolts 32, which holesare-elongatedto accommodate the rocking movements of "the/rocker E9.

The "spring 26 or other yielding :m-eans lSl'sPOSltioned between thecarrier8 and the carpmember 2 and engages the springseats I642 lpof thecarrier and car member, respectively. :Inother words, the yielding meansis attachedtothe car member and carrier, respectively, so that when thecarrier is moved laterally of the-cartheyielding means is distortedcausing a tendencytoreturn the carrier to normal position.

When the couplerl;movesilaterally, -as.-shown in Fig. 3, the rocker l9rocksior: rollinglytilts-with the springzfl :so that oneside-of thebottom .of .the sprin :moves downwardly "(the left sideiin Fig. 3) t andthe other side of the bottom of ,the spring is forced upwardly (theright side of Fig. 3). The'said upward and downward :movements aresubstantially equal. In this arrangement the spring is compressedsubstantially equally on all sides thereof, thus materially increasingthe-life and resiliency of the springbyequally distribut- .is greaterthan 37. Fig. Sshows the-same spring with the plane 44 of the" top ofthe'spring hori- .zontal and the plane -45 on -an;-inclinefrom the.horizontaLsuch :as it has-inthe positionshown in Fig. 3. Inthisposition (Figs.-3- and 8) thedistances 46 and 51 are substantiallythe same so that the side of the spring adjacent :distance lii is thesame as the'side of the-spring adjacent distance 4'! and, ofcourse,'the-.sidesof the spring between these two are the same-alsothus'with my improved rocker the'spring is compressed equall onallsides, even though distorted.

Drain holes are preferably provided -through the spring seat 2| and themember'Z. The rocker I9 is of U section for strength.

Fig.4 shows a modified form of rocker provided with extensions 56 whichengage removable pieces and are held in place thereby. Bolts 52 securethe removable pieces to the member 2,

Fig. 5 shows a modified form wherein the member 2 is provided with aconvex surface 55 upon which the base plate 55 rocks or tilts toaccomplish the advantageous features of the rocker 19. The base plate isformed with stiffening flanges 51 and spring retaining flanges 58. Ashim may be placed in the base plate 56 if desired.

It is understood that to accomplish the purposes and advantages of myinvention I require a rocking engagement between the spring supportingelement and the element which supports such spring supporting element.This may be provided by either element having a flat surface rockablyengaging a convex surface on the other element or both elements may haveconvex engaging surfaces. Fig. 1 shows one form and Fig. 5 shows amodification of this feature;

I preferably provide a small fiat horizontal surface in the convexengaging surface of one of said elements adjacent the middle of thesurface (i. e., adjacent the middle of the car) so that during theordinary movements of a car running on a straight rough track the rockerdoes not come into play, thus reducing the wear on the rocker anditssupport.

The accompanying drawings illustrate the preferred form of theinvention, though it is to be understood that the invention is notlimited to the exact details of construction shown and described, as itis obvious that various modifications thereof, within the scope of theclaims, will occur to persons skilled in the art.

I claim:

1. A cushioning and centering device for a railway car couplercomprising a member attached to the car and having a portion below thecoupler, a coupler carrier arranged to move horizontally and verticallywith the car coupler, a rocker arranged to rock upon said portion whenthe coupler moves laterally, and a coil spring interposed between andseated upon said carrier and said rocker, said spring yieldinglyopposing the downward and horizontal service movements of the coupler soas to cushion the coupler substantially and return the coupler to normalposition, the rocking engaging surfaces of said rocker and said portionof the member being such that when the coupler has moved laterally fromthe normal position thereof the downward movement of the couplercompresses the spring substantially equally on all sides thereof.

2. A cushioning and centering device for a railway car couplercomprising a member attached to the car and having a portion below thecoupler provided with a convex surface, a coupler carrier arranged tomove horizontally and vertically with the car coupler, a spring baseplate arranged to rock upon said convex surface when the coupler moveslaterally, and a coil spring interposed between and seated upon saidcarrier and said base plate, said spring yieldingly opposing thedownward and horizontal service movements of the coupler so as tocushion the coupler and return the coupler to normal position.

3. A cushioning device fora railway car coupler comprising a memberattached to the car and having a portion below the coupler, a couplercarrier arranged to move horizontally and vertically with the carcoupler, a rocker arranged to rock upon said portion when the couplermoves laterally, and a coil spring interposed between and seated uponsaid carrier and said rocker, the rocking engaging surfaces of saidcarrier and said ly on all sides thereof.

4. A structure as defined in claim 19 wherein said rocker is formed witha pocket substantially fitting the lower portion of the spring to retainthe spring in proper relationship to said rocker when the coupler moveslaterally of the car.

5. A structure as defined in claim 19 wherein said lower portion of saidmember is of U section comprising spaced apart walls connected by a weband wherein said rocker tilts upon said web and said walls preventdisplacement of said rocker lengthwise of the car.

6. A structure as defined in claim 19 wherein said lower portion of saidmember is of U section comprising spaced apart walls connected by a weband wherein said rocker tilts upon said web and said walls preventdisplacement of said rockor lengthwise of the car, one of said walls andsaid rocker provided with registering apertures and a horizontal boltextending therethrough to hold said rocker in place, certain of saidapertures being elongated to accommodate the tilting of the rocker.

'7. A structure as defined in claim 19 wherein said lower portion ofsaid member is of U section comprising spaced apart walls connected by aweb and wherein said rocker tilts upon said web and said walls preventdisplacement of said rocker lengthwise of the car, and removable meansbetween said walls adjacent each end of the rocker to preventdisplacement of said rocker sidewise of the car.

8. A structure as defined in claim 19 wherein said lower portion of saidmember is of U section comprising spaced apart walls connected by a weband wherein said rocker tilts upon said web and said walls preventdisplacement of said rocker lengthwise of the car, and removable meansbetween said walls adjacent each end of the rocker to preventdisplacement of said rocker sidewise of the car, the inner surfaces ofsaid removable means being curved to substantially engage the ends ofsaid rocker during the tilting of said rocker.

9. A structure as defined in claim 19 wherein the engaging surfacesbetween said rocker and said portion of said member are fiat andparallel adjacent the middle of said surfaces to provide a substantialbearing area when the coupler is in its central position.

10. A cushioning supporting device for a railway car coupler comprisingmeans carried by the car including a member below the coupler, a helicalspring having supporting association therewith a second member engagedwith the first mentioned member, and means associated with said springto support said coupler thereupon, at least one of said members beingconvex to provide a rockable support for said spring.

11. A cushioning supporting device for a railway car coupler comprisinga helical spring, means to seat said coupler upon the upper end of saidspring, and means to support the lower end of said spring on the carembodying a pair of rollingly tiltable engaged surfaces.

12. In a railway car a cushioning supporting device for a couplercomprising a helical spring suitably arranged to support said couplerand isaidicoupler.

:vvay :car :coupler comprising means carried by the-lcartrincludinga-member .below the coupler, a ;seco-n'd:member rollingly tiltablysupport-ed 'by thefirst mentioned member, and a helical spring seatedupon said second memberand supporting 114. A cushioning supportingdevice for a rail 'wayrcar'coupler comprising means carried by the:car'including a member below the coupler, a, .helical spring havingsupporting association therewith a second member engaged with the firstmentioned member, and a'coupler carrier movable with the coupler seatedupon said 'springto' support the couplerthereupon, at least porting saidspring.

16. Atcushioning supporting device for a railway .car coupler comprisingmeans carried by the 'ca-r'including "a member below thecoupler, atruncated conical helical-spring having-supporting association therewithasecond member engaged with the first mentioned member and a couplercarrier movable with the coupler seated upon said'spring to support thecoupler thereupon, at least one of said members being convex to providea rockable support for said spring. 7 1'7. In a railway car'a cushioningsupporting device for a coupler comprising a helical spring suitablyarranged to support said coupler and means to support the lower end ofsaid spring including a'pair of engaged members of which at least one isconvex.

18. In a railway cara cushioning supporting device for a couplercomprising a rollingly tiltably supported helical spring and meansassociated with said spring for supporting said coupler.

19. A cushioning supporting device for arailway car coupler comprising amember attached to the carandhaving a portion below the coupler, acoupler-carrier arranged to move horizontally and vertically with the.coupler, a rocker arranged to 'rollingly tilt upon said portion when thecoupler moves laterally, and a coil spring interposed between and seatedupon said carrier and said rocker.

JAMES S. SWANN.

